I am a big fan of The Elder Scrolls series and have been for years. It is one of the premiere RPG series and one of the premiere open world game series. People rave about how amazing Oblivion and Morrowind were, and Skyrim is considered one of the best games of the last few years, but many don’t realize just how important the first games were.

I will concede that the first game, Arena, is rather generic. It came off as more of a Wizardry clone, as well as containing many basic fantasy elements that didn’t make it stand out. later games would take the ideas and make them great but Arena is not the best the series has to offer. That said, too many people write off the second game in the series, Daggerfall. I am of the opinion that Daggerfall was one of the most important games ever made, and was a turning point for the RPG genre and open world games.

To begin, Daggerfall was a true 3D game unlike Arena’s 2.5D engine, and took full advantage of that to create a explorable world. In fact, the world in Daggerfall is one of the biggest ever in a video game, albeit with the drawback of having a lot of dead space. Still, it is this open world 3D development that directly led to more innovation in open world games and also taught developers what the limits should be. Thanks to this, we have gotten great games including not only Morrowind, Oblivion and Skyrim, but also the Witcher games and Breath of the Wild.

Another point to mention is that Daggerfall allowed for true roleplaying rather than just getting experience. You had to mold your character and develop them by choices. Choices were a big part of the game, including the very ending, which had multiple possible outcomes. It had a lot more of a unique feeling than anything else at the time and part of the reason was that unlike Arena, the developers did not take many influences from other games.

Daggerfall had some very important lore aspects as well for the series, as it was this game that introduced the Daedra, as well as started several long running storylines such as the Dwemer, Mannimarco and so on. the events of this game’s story had a major impact on all the later games, yet that isn’t realized by many players who came late to the series. Yes, Daggerfall seems dates by today’s standards, but it is this game that laid the foundation for so many greats, including one can argue, Baldur’s Gate. Through both storytelling and game design, Daggerfall helped make RPG gaming what it is today, and we all owe a debt to it for that.

If you haven’t played the game, you really should. it is a true classic and indeed it is one of the most important games ever made. Even if many people simply do not realize that this is the case, it needed to be said.

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The above was the opinion solely of the author and does not necessarily reflect that of Real otaku Gamer or its staff.

Introduction: Welcome back to the SNES Era of Gaming. Here, I’ll be talking about a hidden gem that not many people actually know about. This title is known as The Legend Of The Mystical Ninja or (Ganbare Goemon) in Japan. Whilst only one Mystical Ninja title came over to the United States, there has been a whole slew of these titles in Japan, whereas there was only this version, and GBA title and 2 N64 games released in the US.

The Story: The Legend Of The Mystical Ninja stars the adventures of Kid Ying (Goemon) and Dr. Yang (Ebisamaru) respectively. Their adventure starts with investigating the haunted Horo Shrine and it leads all the way across Japan in an effort to save Princess Yuki from The Forces of Evil. From what starts off as a small Journey, turns into being a rather massive epic adventure. Going from places such as towns to amusement parks, through actual bamboo forests literally leading to a final battle within a Japanese castle itself. Now for a SNES game, it is rather impressive just what this particular game is quite capable of. Regardless without giving too much away, you should definitely give this title a chance!

Gambling as in betting high and low is one of the many Mini games within This game.

Why you should not sleep on it?: There is a lot of different things you can do within this game alone. From going through hidden mazes, hitting the sauna, playing a Whack A Mole-style game, getting your fortune told, gambling, actually playing the lottery, actually being on a quiz show, actually betting on horses and playing Gradius. The Legend of the Mystical Ninja has enough to satisfy even the most finicky gamer. With a hefty campaign and side areas, you can visit and that is excluding the games hidden areas, Legend Of The Mystical Ninja is a game that has enough for just about anyone. Literally, this alone justifies why you should not sleep on it.

Fun Factor: Honestly, the single player campaign of The Legend Of The Mystical Ninja” is a large enough endeavor in its own right. Even having beaten the actual game? I’d say that the entire game itself is fun due to the sheer amount of areas that you can explore. Almost every area has one town and one dungeon area. Most stages have a boss at the end of each level. I think the sole exception to this rule is the third level in which it only has a gigantic Octopus mini boss given that it’s a Konami themed amusement park. The developers more than likely threw this in as a way to break up the gameplay and keep it fresh.

Personal Likes:

Any video game that actually has an actual amusement park has my vote.

The Sheer Amount Of Diversity This Game Has

Seriously this game offers a lot and the diverse gameplay element keep thing light and fun. Legend Of The Mystical Ninja still impresses me for the hardware they were using SNES.

The amount of Mini games it has.
Now to show you why you should not sleep on this game. I have played about 99.9% of the minigames that this game has. Each one of them brings more replay value to the game that already robust in gameplay options. It shows why this game is the total package.

It’s amazing Cast Of Characters
Literally, every character is memorable in its own way. From Kid Ying who is actually based after the actual Goemon Ishikawa. Even to the Fabled Doctor Yang who serves as this games. As player 2 there are also supporting characters who do appear. They include a ninja named Sasuke, to a girl named Yae, who is a part of the Iga Ninja clans so the game itself is filled to the brim with Japanese references overall.

The setting for the entire game overall.
I usually don’t like all areas of most games, but this game is different. The lore of the game is what I personally enjoy the most. You start in Edo and you wind up in Kyushu, how awesome is that? Extremely awesome if I do say so myself.

Personal Dislikes:

Sadly not every level has a boss. The third level only has a Mini-Boss but the fact that it’s an amusement park makes up for it.

The Length Of The Game
Personally, even though the game is satisfying, I wanted more. I personally feel that it should have been much longer. But then again, I like my games to be long and drawn out but at the same time have a lot to offer. For me, Stage 3 even though it is an amusement park, could have been bigger. For the gamer who is speed running the game, you can literally pass four screens and be done with the entire thing and that to me is saying something.

Some of The Boss Dungeons can get tedious
Namely Stage 4 and 5’s boss castles. Generally, The Legend Of The Mystical Ninja’s levels is easy going and smooth. Those castles turn the game into a platformer where the screen has you doing everything from jumping onto 3D platforms to turning the entire screen around in a puzzle-like environment in order to advance. So yeah, it does take some skill to get further ahead.

Some stages require you to buy a key item to advance.
Only two levels do this, but still, it is quite annoying. The first being a pass within the bamboo forest level and the second is in the form of a royal textbook that is needed to translate the language of the monarch so you can advance. That can honestly put a cramp in the gaming style of some players. This is mostly a slight oversight but still one that can get in the way if you are pressed for time. Let’s face it, if you’re the gamer on the go, (the game is also on New Nintendo 3DS) You’re more than likely going to be pressed for time.

The inability to go back to previous stages
So once you advance. that is it until you replay the game. Unless you save your progress at the diary stage, but this game also has the password system that most SNES titles used at the time, so this is kinda more of a drawback.

Personally, if you have not picked up The Legend Of The Mystical Ninja for the SNES. You are missing out.

Closing Statement: For this being a SNES era video game, The Legend Of The Mystical Ninja was one of Konami’s greatest titles on the SNES. The game for me is pretty much a godsend. This is because in an era of traditional American style titles. The Legend Of The Mystical Ninja broke the Japanese based game mold for me. Now granted, this was before the big Asian-based boom came in where every title was inspired by some form of Asian archetype. Basically, The Legend Of The Mystical Ninja” also introduced me to a whole new genre of gaming and personally, I’d like to pay it forward and tell the whole world about how amazing this title is. So if you fancy playing a hidden gem within the SNES library look no further than,”The Legend Of The Mystical Ninja” for Super Nintendo because it is a game most people definitely slept on. With that being said it’s time to wake up and smell the Coffee.

Nano Assault Neo is a great game that harkens back to the old school games of the 16 bit era brought to you by Shin’En. Games like Gradius, R-Type are ones that I think of when I am trying to sell this game. While, I only use these classic titles as mere reference points into luring you the reader or any random person whom is looking for a good game to try, this game packs so much more. Nano Assault Neo is a very beautiful, fast-paced (16:9 60 frames per seconds) space shooter based inside the microscopic world in linear PCM 5.1 surround sound. Nano Assault isn’t just a side scrolling shooter like the games I originally mentioned yet it is a 3D hybrid of those titles. You will face all sorts of microscopic creatures that will come at you from various angles even from ways you can’t even see them attacking you from. These strange creatures come in all shapes and sizes with a large arsenal of projectiles speeding your way these will not be your only obstacles neither, the world itself presents its own challenges.

“A warrior never enters a battle without a proper weapon” with the “Nanoshop” provided to you in between the 16 stages divided between 4 uniquely designed microscopic cluster worlds you can upgrade your ship with points collected on the previous stage completed with up to 3 different types of Subweapons and 4 Satellites which are position-able anyplace around your ship via your Wii U Gamepad. You can buy extra lives, Item Attractors, Score Doublers amongst other additions to your arsenal. Each world has its own large “extreme boss” after the 4 stages are completed within each cluster. Then fun can also be shared with a friend locally via co-op play using the TV & gamepad the gamepad even displays a small live feed in the corner of it displaying the action that’s going on screen with your team member. Additionally, missions are given to you that you can decide to complete if you desire along with competing with online with the ranking system provided to you the system ranges from all modes available to you within the game like single-player, two-player & survivor mode to name a few.

This game is another great title that utilizes the Wii u gamepad well in small subtle ways that are intuitive and not overly done. Nano Assault can be used totally independent of the television, which is a plus for a parent of a house load of children and a wife who just might want to use the TV right when I am deep within a battle on one of these tyrannical micro worlds of Nano Assault Neo. This game can be played by any level of gamer but, you have been warned this game is not for the faint of heart, just endure the pain that will occur you will be thankful afterwards. This is an excellent shooter to the controller gripping end, I hope my words has moved you to go pick up this title on Nintendo’s Eshop now available for $9.99 in the U.S. Don’t miss out on this great game you already slept long enough on Shin’En games Nano Assault Neo.

When trophies were first introduced to Playstation I was intrigued and excited. This was Sony’s way of competing with Microsoft Xbox 360 Achievements. Super Star Dust HD was among one of the first games that started the trophy system. My goal? To obtain EVERY single trophy! This was also my first full 1080p game. So I decided to give this game another breath of fresh air and give it another go.

The game has many different play modes, such as arcade mode, planet mode, endless, survival, bomber and time attack and it also includes a 2 player co op mode. For the sake of this throwback we will go visit just plain and simple arcade mode. The player controls a space fighter craft that can move in any direction on a spherical shield surrounding a planet, while simultaneously firing in any direction independent of its movement. In arcade mode you are visiting planets and umm… destroying asteroids and alien enemies. Think of it as a very advanced Asteroids game. You get many different types of weapons for different types of asteroids. Rock Crusher for regular asteroids, Fire for gold asteroids and Ice for Ice asteroids. Along with those weapons you also get bombs which destroy everything with a certain radius. Weapons can also be upgrade by shooting the Kryptronite looking asteroid rocks that are found with in the bigger asteroids. Among the weapon power up you can also find points, shields and 1-ups.

After MANY frustrating attempts I was able to obtain every single trophy in the game. After doing so, I wondered… now what? I was able to get much play out of the game through the other modes in the game. The game was extremely easy to start and play for any novice player, but it does challenge even hardcore players. Very worth the $10.00 if you want to burn some time.

The Game Boy Advance is home to many great games, from platformers, to RPGs, its library is full of hit after hit, but alas, such greatness can lead to overlooked titles, hidden from sight by more well known games, and such was the fate of this title, a puzzle/platformer that even as a series, was overlooked by most gamers.

Empire of Dreams begins with our main character, Klonoa, waking up in the Kingdom of Jillius and is promptly captured and taken to the king himself, and he is charged for the crime of dreaming, a crime caused by a law created by the King himself, because he couldn’t dream, and so, decided no one could, but instead of being punished, he is tasked to defeat four creatures causing mayhem in the kingdom, and if he succeeds, he’ll be allowed to go free.

The presentation in this game is good for the most part, the graphics are clear, and the sprites animations are well done, the background does a good job of making you feel as if you are in a dream, and while the music is certainly not memorable it fits the atmosphere of the game well.

The game is divided into 5 Worlds, that have 8 “Visions” each, and every 4 or so stages, the gameplay is given a slight twist, in the usual stages you solve puzzles by using your platforming skills, but in others, you have to move fast, because the screen keeps moving and if you fall behind, you die.

Another stage lets you ride an air board while dodging enemies as you move, and one more that it’s the boss stage, in which you defeat the boss to advance to the next world.

While this game is a platformer, most of it is done to solve puzzles in the stages, you can run, jump, flutter in the air using Klonoa’s rabbit like ears to gain distance, and use the Wind Bullet, which allows to grab enemies, objects, and use it as a grappling hook of sorts, the purpose of the moving stages and the air board stages is to reach the end, but in the usual stages, you have to find 3 Hexagram shaped stars in order to open the door to leave.

On the way to exit each level are diamonds, that have no immediate value, but, you need them in order to unlock extra visions, that are more difficult to beat, but really not by much, as the game will probably be easy for most players.

Klonoa: Empire of Dreams is a platformer like no other, it’s fun, innovative, and while the series is likely dead due to poor sales, it’s good to remember it, and with that in mind, I would recommend this to fans of the genre, and it’s also a good choice for younger gamers to get into, but in the end, if you are looking for a fun experience, this is one that you will enjoy.